Rancocas Woods is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

located within Mount Laurel Township in Burlington County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. The community was developed on the site of an

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

. Houses in Rancocas Woods were first built in the 1930s. There were problems with the community when first developed. No sewers were installed, because of limited

drainage Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of a surface's water and sub-surface water from an area with excess of water. The internal drainage of most agricultural soils is good enough to prevent severe waterlogging (anaerobic conditio ...

, which caused floods to occur during heavy rainstorms. The

water pressure Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and e ...

from

fire hydrant A fire hydrant, waterplug, or firecock (archaic) is a connection point by which firefighters can tap into a water supply. It is a component of active fire protection. Underground fire hydrants have been used in Europe and Asia since at least ...

s was unsubstantial—the volunteer fire department had to pump its water from the nearby

Rancocas Creek Rancocas Creek is a tributary of the Delaware River in southwestern New Jersey in the United States. The creek's main stem is long, with a North Branch of and a South Branch flowing .U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-re ...

. On July 11, 2018 the Mount Laurel Zoning Board voted to allow a section of commercial property to be zoned residential to allow the building of an apartment rental complex. This developer proposal will bring sewer and fire hydrants to this area, but will change the makeup of the shops at so-called Main Street Mount Laurel. The proposal was met with public backlash.

Location

Rancocas Woods is located on the Rancocas Creek, a major river that empties into the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

. Exit 43 on Interstate 295 can be used to access Rancocas Woods. There is no direct exit on the

New Jersey Turnpike The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of controlled-access highways in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The turnpike is maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA).The Garden State Parkway, although maintained by NJTA, is not consi ...

, however, the nearest exits to Rancocas Woods are exit 4 ( Route 73 – Mount Laurel) and exit 5 ( County Route 541 –

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

, Mount Holly).

Transportation

New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

provides bus service to and from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

on the 413 route.Burlington County Bus / Rail Connections

, backed up by the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

as of June 26, 2010. Accessed June 18, 2013.

References

{{Burlington County, New Jersey Mount Laurel, New Jersey Unincorporated communities in Burlington County, New Jersey Unincorporated communities in New Jersey